Hemp building

Hemp is an environmentally friendly and sustainable, tried and tested building material that has been used throughout the world for centuries. When combined with lime it can be used as an insulating filling for masonry walls. The lime and hemp combination together forms a structure that is:

Fire-resistant

Rodent-proof

Termite/white ant proof (termites are a real problem in Western Australia).

A hemp house in Tasmania. Please note: This photo is being used as an example as MEK Plastering were not involved in this project.

About Hemp

Currently hemp is not used as a structural material on its own, however, when used in combination with steel frames, it creates a structure that is not only strong but can be cyclone rated. Hemp can also be used in conjunction with wooden frames as well as a variety of other structural options. The recommended R rating for a house in Australia has been raised over the past few years with traditional buildings no longer compliant.

R-value is a measure of resistance to heat flow. The Australian standard for R-value is RT2.8. Hemp is rated at RT3.8. R-values are not the only thing that contribute to the comfort of your home. Hemp also 'breathes' which helps to regulate the moisture and humidity in your home. Hemp provides highly effective insulation values resulting in reduced costs and/or cancel costs of heating and cooling.

Hemp is an environmentally sustainable product. Here at MEK Plastering our aim is to create happy and healthy homes for people who care about their families and friends as much as we care about ours.

MEK Plastering is very excited to be one of the first companies in WA to be using this amazing material. We see hemp as the answer to a lot of issues facing the building industry today and know that with all the benefits it holds you will too.

Building products

The other use in building is hemp herd renders, adding the lime, sand and hemp herd together to create a suitable wall render with a finish that is visually appealing and different to anything seen around Western Australia at the moment.

The other reason for using a hemp lime render is to compliment the walls allowing the whole building to bind together with no structural joins and no cracking, meaning the whole building is one free moving, living breathing organism.

Alternatively, hemp lime render can be used over clay bricks or most traditional materials, to create that beautifully different look that you would want to achieve.

All traditional renders offered by MEK Plastering can be used on and over hemp masonry walls and ceilings. If you just want the insulation factor and other benefits of hemp masonry, then the finish that can be achieved is much the same as any rendered house you see around WA. Accept there will be little to no cracking.